Ball guide and screen for deep well jet pump



H. cHEcKE Erm. 2,916,147

BALL GUIDE AND SCREEN F 0R DEEP WELL JET PUMP Filed oct. e, 1958 Dec. 8, 1959 BALL GUIDE AND SCREEN FR DEEP WELL JET PUMP Harry Checke, Metuchen, and Albert Melville, Rahway,

Application `October 6, 1958, Serial No. '765,450

2 Claims. (Cl. 210-43'1) This invention comprises a novel and useful ball guide and screen for deep well jet pumps and more particularly relates to an attachment to be applied upon the tail pipe or suction line of a deep well jet pump of the type employing plastic pipes, in order lto thereby facilitate insertion of the jet pump into a well bore. The present application constitutes 'a continuation-in-part of our copending application Serial No. 727,109, tiled April 8, 1,958, now abandoned.

Plastic pipe is now coming to be used almost exclusively in the installation of shallow or deep well jet pumps. However, as is well known, plastic pipe has a tendency to retain the curvature which it takes when it is rolled upon a reel or the like. Consequently, when the depending tail or suction line of a jet pump is inserted yinto a well, this curvature causes the end of the same to project towards one side or against the wall of the well bore. When fthe jet pump and its tail pipe are lowered into a cased well or one wherein there are irregularities for connecting the sections of the well casing together, or obstructions in the wall of the well as by the joints the laterally projected end of the pipe is frequently hung up or caught thereon, thereby impeding the passage of the pipe and the proper installation of the jet pump in the well bore.

It is therefore a primary purpose of this invention to provide a device which will function both as a screen for preventing the ingress of foreign material into the lower or inlet end of the suction or tail pipe of the jet pump, and which will also serve as an eifective guide means to prevent the end of this pipe from encountering and hanging upon obstructions in the wall of the well bore as upon joints or connections between adjacent sections of the well casing during the lowering or raising of the plastic pipe in the well bore.

A further object of the invention is to provide an attaehment conforming to the preceding object which shall enclose the customary foot valve of the suction or the tail pipe of the jet pump and thus prevent the latter from interfering with the lowering of the jet pump and its tail pipe into a Well bore.

Another object of the invention is to provide a device in accordance with the foregoing objects which may be readily secured to the end of the tail pipe and upon the foot valve casing depending therefrom;

A further important object of the invention is to provide 'a combined ball guide and screen for the end of a tail pipe or suction line of a well pump and which shall have its components free of corrosive action by the uids in the well bore and which will not be susceptible' to accumulations of materials or minerals thereon by such fluids.

A further important additional object of the invention is to provide an attachment in accordance with the preceding objects wherein a non-metallic weighted foot valve shall be incorporated into the ball screen and guide above referred to.

These together with other objects and advantages which United States Patent() Patented Dec. 8, 1959 rice 2 will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a view in central vertical section through a portion of a well bore and a jointed well casing and illustrating the present invention applied to the end of a tail or suction pipe and cooperating to prevent the lowering of the latter into a well bore from being impeded by engagement of the tail pipe with a joint of the casing;

Figure 2 is a detail View in vertical longitudinal section taken substantially upon the plane indicated by the section line 2-2 of Figure l and showing in particular the construction of the attachment and its mounting up on the lower end of the tail pipe; and

Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional detail view taken substantially upon the plane indicated by the section line 3 3 of Figure 2.

In the accompanying drawings, the numeral 10 designates a well bore into which it is desired to insert and position a conventional type of jet pump assembly, not shown, the same including a suction or tail pipe 12 of plastic conduit and which has a foot valve assembly indicated generally by the numeral 14 disposed upon the lower end thereof. Shown at 16 is a conventional well casing, the same consisting of sections which are joined together as by connecting or coupling members 18. As will be apparent, the coupling members serve to produce an irregularity in the interior surface of the pipe against lwhich the conventional foot valve assembly and the normal conical screen, usually -associated therewith, may catch or hang up against the joint and thus impede introduction of the jet pump assembly into the well bore.

Although plastic pipes possess many superiorities to the conventional metallic tubing heretofore employed in jet pump installations, it possesses the one disadvantage that it tends to curl up and maintain a curved condition after storage in coils, upon reels or rolls, in the trunks of cars and the like. This tendency to curl results in the unavoidable and objectionable characteristic that the lower end of this pipe including the foot valve assembly 14 thereon, tends to be directed against and to thus engage a side of the well casing into which the pipe is lowered, so that such engagement causes it to encounter obstruction such as the couplings 18 of the well casing or the like or any other irregularities in the well casing and thereby impede the introduction of the assembly into the well bore.

Referring now especially to Figure 2 it will be seen that the attachment 14 includes a casing or sleeve 20 of plas= tic material which is both non-corrosive and which has a minimum tendency to accumulate deposits thereon from minerals contained in the well water.

The interior of this casing is internally threaded as at 22 for engagement upon the corresponding external threaded lower portion of the plastic pipe 12 although it will be appreciated that other suitable connecting means can be employed for securing the casing to this plastic pipe.

The interior of the casing provides a chamber 26 comprising a valve chamber, having an inlet passage 28 in its lower end, and at the junction of the passage 28 with the interior of the chamber 26 there is provided a valve seat 30.

Integrally formed upon the lower end of the casing 20 is a plastic ball or sphere 32 provided with perforations or apertures 34 therein whereby the same constitutes a screen surrounding the inlet end and passage 28 of the casing.

A non-return check valve comprising a foot valve for the-pumpassembly is disposedwithin the casing 20 and the screen 32. The same includes a plastic ball or sphere 36 having a depending tapered stem 38, the latter eX- tendingthrough the passage A`2`8 and into the interior of the screen 322y The ball 36i cooperates with the valve seat, as shown in- Figure'2, so that while it permits in- -flow of iluid upwardly through the passage 28 to the interior of the valve chamber 26, .itV will prevent reverse flow therethrough in a manner well understood in the art.

Preferably a quantity of mercury or the like as indi- Lcated at 39 isr sealed into the valve 36 and its tapering stem portion 38 to thereby gravity urge the val-ve into its seated position upon the valve seat.

In order to prevent the valve moving too far from its seat, so that the stem 38 might be withdrawn from the bore 28, there is provided a plastic stop pin 40 having `a head portionV 42 and having a screw threaded engagement through the wall of the casing 20. This pin is positioned in a location which will limit upward travel of the valve from its seat and prevent disengagement of the valve stern 38 from the bore 28.

As will be further observed, the diameter of the screen 32 is greater than that of the valve casing 20 so that as shown in Figure l it will prevent lodgement of the end of the pipe 12 and the valve tting thereon from being caught in the coupling 18, thereby enabling the Valve cage in the end of the pipe to readily pass such obstruction during lowering of the pipe into a well bore.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Funther, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A foot valve assembly for the tail pipe of a jet pump assembly comprising a cylindrical casing of ta non-metallic material adapted to be secured to the lower end of a tail pipe and fto communicate with the interior of the latter, `a valve seat in said casing, a non-metallic foot valve in said casing cooperating with said seat for preventing reverse ow therethrough, said casing having an inlet passage opening through said valve seat from the lower end of said casing, a non-metallic spherical and hollow screen carried byand depending from the lower end of said casing and of a diameter greater than that of said casing, said valve having a hollow reduced stem depending therefrom into said screen and loaded with mercury for gravity urging said valve to said seat.

2. The combination of claim 1, said valve comprising a closed hollow sphere communicating with said stem and partly lled with mercury to supplement the mercury in said stern and additionally urge said valve 'to said seat. f

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 50,846 Rose Nov. 7, 1865 129,138 Jewell et al. July 16, 1872 163,618 Walker May 25, 1875 462,304 Delehanty Nov. 3, 1891 536,858 Donato Apr. 2, 1895 743,006 Loucks Nov. 3, 1903 2,730,959 Brenner Jan. 17, 1956 

